Combat Forces Command’s Mission Delta 6 Guardians Place Third in Cybersecurity Competition

The United States Space Force’s (USSF) team placed third at this year’s 10th Annual SANS Service Cup, hosted in Washington D.C., December 14th – 15th. Mission Delta 6’s 1st Lt. Grady Phillips, Spc. 4 Liam Hermida, Spc. 4 Vahe Martirosyan and Spc. 3 Luke Felker, along with Space Training and Readiness Command’s Maj. Jonathan Hemingway, demonstrated exceptional collaboration, strategic thinking and skill under pressure to establish themselves as some of the most elite Defensive Cyberspace Warfare operators within the Joint Force.

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Combat Forces Command’s Mission Delta 6 Guardians Place Third in Cybersecurity Competition

Published Jan. 8, 2026
By USSF Combat Forces Command Public Affairs

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The United States Space Force’s (USSF) team placed third at this year’s 10th Annual SANS Service Cup, hosted in Washington D.C., December 14th – 15th.

The USSF team, assembled from multiple units across the USSF including four members from Combat Forces Command’s Mission Delta 6 (MD 6), took on eight of the best cyber operations teams from across the Department of War to secure third place in the competition and earn a spot in the International Competition scheduled for 2026.

Mission Delta 6’s 1st Lt. Grady Phillips, Spc. 4 Liam Hermida, Spc. 4 Vahe Martirosyan and Spc. 3 Luke Felker, along with Delta 26’s Maj. Jonathan Hemingway, demonstrated exceptional collaboration, strategic thinking and skill under pressure to establish themselves as some of the most elite Defensive Cyberspace Warfare operators within the Joint Force.

“Within Mission Delta 6, we have a warrior ethos that’s captured in our moto Audaculo Actio… meaning Audacious Action,” said MD 6 commander Col. Travis Prater. “This ethos is embodied by our Commando approach, small specially trained teams, who take on the most challenging missions, and are willing to put in the work others are not to deliver elite results. That’s the culture of MD 6! The results of this competition demonstrate not only the skill of our Guardians, but their readiness to crush any foe that wants to pick a fight!”

The SANS Service Cup is an annual, high-level Cybersecurity competition organized by the SANS Institute. It is exclusive to members of the U.S. Department of War and provides service members a chance to compete in complex, real-world cyber incident simulations. Competing five-person teams are scored on their response to a variety of complex cyber incidents and attacks over the course of the two-day competition, with the winning teams getting the opportunity to compete for the 2026 International Services Cup.

“Cybersecurity is an ever-evolving domain,” said Chief Master Sgt. Gregory Buthorne, MD 6 senior enlisted leader. “So our training must match that pace. The more our Guardians prepare in realistic simulations against the latest threats, the more resilient they become, ensuring they are ready to face and defeat any real-world adversary.”

Mission Delta 6, headquartered at Schriever Space Force Base, is a component of the U.S. Space Force and generates, presents, sustains and improves Cyberspace Warfare forces for the Joint Force by conducting Cyberspace Warfare to defend USSF space systems from adversarial attack through the cyber domain. MD 6 consists of two squadrons and one detachment, across two geographically separate locations. Squadrons include the 66th Cyberspace Squadron and the 6th Cyberspace Sustainment Squadron.